No Sweat - 4 Ways to Keep Your Home Cool in Summer

Summer 2021 has been a pretty hot one, and some of us are finding it challenging to keep our cool outside and inside our homes. Fortunately, we can do things to beat the heat, and here are four ways to keep your home cool in summer.

Fans

The obvious way to keep your home cool on hot days is to install fans. Ceiling fans installed in every room will ensure that you stay blissfully relaxed. However, some people find these fans noisy, ugly, and intrusive and opt for portable fans that can be moved about to areas where they are most needed and then stored away out of sight during the warmer months of the year.

If you live in a hot country, installing an energy-efficient whole house fan is an excellent option as a real house fan draws in cooler evening air through open windows and pulls warm air from the home's living space, blowing it into the attic. Whole house fans can be a cheaper option than air conditioning, although they don't provide the same level as cooling.

Air Conditioning

Rather than just blowing hot air around, air conditioners cool the air. There are five types of air conditioners that can be installed in homes: central, ductless mini-split air conditioners, portable, hybrid, and evaporative. Central air conditioning is the most efficient way to keep your whole house cool as ductwork is fed into every home, with each room having supply and return registers. 

Window Coverings

An easy way to stop heat from entering your home is to block direct sunlight from coming through your windows and doors. 

Have wooden shutters installed, such as plantation shutters that will block out the sun as well as provide your home with extra security. Wooden Venetian blinds will block out most of the sunlight but aren't as effective as solid shutters.

Blind or curtains made from heavy dark material will block out light and heat, especially if they are lined with thermal blackout fabric. Shut the curtains or blinds during the day to stop the sun from heating your home.

You can block the sun from penetrating your windows and doors from the outside, too, by planting trees and bushes in your front garden to create shade. Awnings and exterior shutters are another tremendous sun-blocking solution, as are tinted window films that stick to the glass and diffuse light.

Turn Off

Electrical devices can give off heat, albeit a small amount, but if you have a few devices on at once, the heat will soon build up. Turn off all electrical items you are not using. Cooking appliances generate a lot of heat, so if you can, wait until evening to cook meals and set up a barbecue or electrical grill outside to cook your dinner on.

Lightbulbs such as Conventional incandescent light bulbs give off 90% of their energy as waste heat. Switch to low-energy bulbs to cut down heat and save money in the process.